Retractable speed bump

ABSTRACT

A retractable speed bump mounted in a street, road or roadway for controlling the speed of vehicles, which includes three main components: enabling bar, bump, and a link mechanism. The speed bump rests in the grooves on the road surface when it is not in operation. When a vehicle moves over the enabling bar, the tire runs on top of the enabling bar, pushing the enabling bar downward. This downward force triggers the link mechanism and pushes the bump up out of the grooves on the road surface. In one embodiment according to the present invention, the link mechanism is a class 1 lever.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to vehicle speed control meansand more particularly to an improved vehicle speed bump device.

2. Description of Related Art

Generally, speed bumps are frequently embedded in roadways or placed ontop of the roadway to regulate the speed of vehicles crossing over them.The speed bumps are generally low enough for vehicles to safely crossyet high enough to force a vehicle to slow down while crossing otherwisecausing a substantial jolt to the vehicles. However, even when the speedof the vehicle has been reduced, a substantial jar is often imparted tothe vehicle. In some cases, the speed bump can strike the frame of thevehicle; it happens especially to the sports car or sedan because theyare low to the ground. Because of this indiscriminate effect on vehiclestraveling over speed bumps, attempts have been made to produceretractable speed bumps.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,362,424 to Barber (1982) discloses a speed bump for useon roadway which imparts a controlled jar (using liquid underneath theground inside the device) to vehicles as they pass over. A retardingforce is imparted to a downwardly depressible member responsive to thespeed of the vehicle. The speed bump do not retract, so that even slowmoving vehicles are jolted by passing over the bumps. U.S. Pat. No.4,974,991 to Mandavi (1990) discloses a speed bump device (made of steelor the like) that includes a lock which operates to lock the speed bumpof the device in operative position when contacted by a vehicle wheelmoving at a higher speed. U.S. Pat. No. 6,457,900 B2 to Bond (2002)discloses a speed bump that is operative based on the speed of thevehicle contacting the bump. These retractable speed bumps stay inoperation and only returns to recess when the vehicle makes contact in aslow speed. The shortcomings of these speed bump is that even if thevehicle is driven within the speed limit they still need to make impactwith the bump in order to put the speed bumps back to recess.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,011,470 B1 to Breazeale et al. (2006) discloses aretractable speed bump that having a retractable canister therein, whichcanister extends above the housing in response to the speed of a vehicleas detected by a speed sensor. The shortcoming of the invention is thatthe car can slow down in front of the speed sensor but speed up afterpassing the speed sensor and thus deviating from the intended purpose ofspeed control. Also, the electric/electronic system is expensive. U.S.Pat. No. 7,476,052 B2 to Hall (2009) discloses a retractablefluid-filled speed bump which is controlled by the speed detected by thetraffic management control device; it shares the same shortcomings ofU.S. Pat. No. 7,011,470 B1. U.S. Pat. No. 7,645,090 B2 to Rastegar etal. (2010) discloses a method for slowing vehicle moving along a surfaceusing a traffic control speed bump, which is controlled by speed sensorand shares the same shortcomings of U.S. Pat. No. 7,011,470 B1.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,389,677 to Dunne (1968) discloses a traffic controldevice that utilizes the weight (force) of the car applied downward topush up the bump. When a vehicle rolls onto the tubes, the weight of thevehicle forces the air in the tubes in a forward direction into thelarger, inflatable barrier members (speed bump).

Accordingly, there remains a need for a retractable speed bump devicethat is nested into a recess when not in use and is triggered andcontrolled by the vehicle's tire pressure when the tire runs over aspecified spot ahead of the bump. The device should utilize simplemechanics and controls the bump by the predetermined time interval basedon speed limit.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A retractable speed bump mounted in a street, road or roadway forcontrolling the speed of vehicles, which includes three main components:enabling bar, bump, and link mechanism. The enabling bar lieshorizontally across the road surface; it is not an actual bump. It issmall as to not obstruct movement of the vehicle. The bump also liesacross the road surface. Although it is large, in its resting positionit is leveled with the road surface and thus does not obstruct movementof the vehicle.

The link mechanism is installed beneath the road surface. In oneembodiment, the link mechanism is a class 1 lever comprising a lever armhaving a first end and a second end, and a fulcrum at the middle of thelever arm. The link mechanism further comprises column. In operation,when the first tire of a vehicle makes contact with the enabling bar,the pressure of the tire pushes the enabling bar downward and providesenergy to the link mechanisms. The link mechanisms then transform thedownward force of the enabling bar into the upward force of the bumpthrough class 1 lever mechanics. Once the bump is pushed to the limit,it starts to fall via gravity, freely or with a resistance. The ratethat the bump falls is set according to the speed limit posted on theroadway. If the vehicle exceeds the speed limit, the bump does not havesufficient time to fall and recede back into the road surface levelbefore the front wheels of the vehicle hit the bump. If the vehicle ismoving within the posted speed limit, the bump has receded back into theroad so that the vehicle will run over the bump without impact. Once theenabling bar is pushed down to the limit it will slowly recover due toresistance so that the second tire should not hit the enabling baragain.

The link mechanism comprises a lever arm with a fulcrum (pivoting point)at the middle and the first end under the enabling bar and the secondend under the bump. The link mechanism may be contained in a generallyrectangular-shaped encasement embedded under the roadway with only twoopenings on the top near the road surface, the first opening for theenabling bar and the second opening for the bump. The encasement is madeof strong, rigid and corrosion resistant materials e.g. steel such thatthe hollow space inside the encasement allows the up and down motion ofthe lever and the frame of the encasement still can support the weightand pressure from the mass on top of and from the surroundings of theencasement. A sturdy column connecting the enabling bar and the firstend of the lever, conveys the force from the enabling bar to the firstend of the lever, pushing down the first end, and in turn, pushing upthe second end of the lever, which is connected to the bump by a column.The column may be in various shapes. One of the embodiments of thecolumn is a spiral spring.

The bump lies horizontally across the road surface. It may be made ofstrong, rigid but relatively light material. When it is pushed up by thelink mechanism the height is the maximum speed bump height allowed bythe regulation of the town. The height of the bump above the roadwayupon impact will depend on how much the speed of the vehicle exceeds thespeed limit of the implemented road. Once pushed up to the limit, itwill start to fall via gravity, freely or with a resistance. The roadwayhas horizontal groove across the road to receive the bump when inrecess; the bump is nested in the groove so the top of the bump levelswith the road surface. There may be small and negligible gap between thebump and the road surface. The bump may comprise means for filling thegap between the top of the bump and the road surface when it is nestedin the groove. For example, the bump may be composed of severallongitudinal pieces across the roads which are slidable against eachother such that the bump may be assembled in different shape to makeseamless connection with the road surface when retracted.

In another embodiment, the link mechanism is accomplished by using aconduit filled with a viscous fluid and two pistons directly below theenabling bar and the bump, respectively. When the vehicle passes over,the tire rolls over the top portion of the enabling bar, depressing theenabling bar. The enabling bar pushes down the piston or pneumaticcylinder directly below the enabling bar and forces the fluid flowtowards the other piston which in turn pushes the bump up and out of thegroove on the road surface. Once the bump is pushed up to the limit, itwill start to fall via gravity, freely or with a resistance. When thepressure on the enabling bar drops after the vehicle passes over, thespeed bump starts to fall gradually due to the fall of the pistonunderneath. The falling rate of the speed bump is predetermined anddesigned based on the speed limit.

In another embodiment, the speed bump device comprises an enabling bar,a bump and a wiring link mechanism that connects the enabling bar andthe bump. As a vehicle moves over the enabling bar, the tire pressuredepresses the enabling bar. The downward force from the enabling bartriggers the rotation movement of the wire, which in turn is transformedto an upward force that pushes the bump up.

The more important features of the invention have thus been outlined inorder that the more detailed description that follows may be betterunderstood and in order that the present contribution to the art maybetter be appreciated. Additional features of the invention will bedescribed hereinafter and will form the subject matter of the claimsthat follow.

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, itis to be understood that the invention is not limited in its applicationto the details of construction and the arrangements of the componentsset forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings.The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced andcarried out in various ways. Also it is to be understood that thephraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose ofdescription and should not be regarded as limiting.

As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception,upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basisfor the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carryingout the several purposes of the present invention. It is important,therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalentconstructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope ofthe present invention.

The foregoing has outlined, rather broadly, the preferred feature of thepresent invention so that those skilled in the art may better understandthe detailed description of the invention that follows. Additionalfeatures of the invention will be described hereinafter that form thesubject of the claims of the invention. Those skilled in the art shouldappreciate that they can readily use the disclosed conception andspecific embodiment as a basis for designing or modifying otherstructures for carrying out the same purposes of the present inventionand that such other structures do not depart from the spirit and scopeof the invention in its broadest form.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention willbecome more fully apparent from the following detailed description, theappended claim, and the accompanying drawings in which similar elementsare given similar reference numerals.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present inventionin the rest position and a separate view of roadway surface;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the embodiment disclosed in FIG. 1 inthe rest position and with a road surface on top of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of one embodiment disclosed in FIG. 1 inoperation and a separate view of roadway surface;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of one embodiment disclosed in FIG. 1 inthe operation and with a road surface on top of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the presentinvention in the rest position and with a road surface on top of theinvention; and

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the presentinvention in the operation and with a road surface on top of theinvention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 4, there are disclosed an embodiment of thespeed bump device according to the present invention. The embodiment isdesigned based on simple mechanics—class 1 lever mechanism. The speedbump device 1 comprises three major components: an enabling bar 10, aspeed bump 20, and a link mechanism which is a class 1 lever 30 in thisembodiment. The class 1 lever 30 includes a lever arm 301 having a firstend 304 under the enabling bar 10, and a second end 306 under the speedbump 20, and a fulcrum 302 at the middle of the lever arm 301. Theenabling bar 10 is connected to the first end 304 by means of column 308and the speed bump is connected to the second end 306 by means of column310. The lever 1 is installed inside a strong, rigid and corrosionresistant rectangular shaped encasement 40 which has two openings on thetop next to the road surface 2. The first opening 402 allows the column308 to protrude out and retracts back into the encasement 40 so that theenabling bar 10 may exert pressure downward from the vehicle tire. Thesecond opening 404 allows the column 310 to protrude out and retractsback into the encasement 40 so that the speed bump 20 may rise up andfall down to control the traffic speed. The roadway surface 2 has asmall, shallow groove 21 for receiving enabling bar 10 and a larger,deeper groove 23 for receiving speed bump 20. Although the column 308and 310 are shown in rectangular shaped cylinder in the drawings, theymay be in any shape.

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, when the vehicle 3 has not approachedenabling bar 10 yet, the enabling bar 10 slightly protrudes out of theroad surface 2 but does not obstruct traffic or cause any jolt to thevehicle. The speed bump 20 is nested in the groove 23 with the topleveled with the road surface 2. The speed bump 20 may be rounded inshape on the top there may be a slight gap between speed bump 20 and theroad surface 2 but the gap shall not cause any jolt to the vehicle oraffect the movement of the vehicle.

Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, when there is a vehicle 3 traveling onthe roadway, as the vehicle 3 moves over the enabling bar 10, thepressure of the tire pushes the enabling bar 10 downward; the energy isconveyed by the column 308 and 310 and transformed to the work pushingthe speed bump 20 rise up of the groove on the road surface 2.

After a predetermined time interval based on the speed limit, the column310 and the second end 306 of the lever 30 falls downwards due togravity which in turn pulls down the bump 20 into groove 23 and returnsto the resting position illustrated in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. The device 1may include other means to control the force that brings the second end306 and the column 310 to fall besides gravity. The falling rate of thespeed bump is predetermined and designed based on the speed limit.

Another embodiment of the device 1 is disclosed in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6where the similar elements are given similar reference numerals in FIG.1 to FIG. 4. In this embodiment, the link mechanism is a conduit 50which is installed in an encasement 40 similar to the one used for theclass 1 lever disclosed in FIG. 1 to 4. The conduit 50 comprises aU-shaped tube 501 having one end extending towards the enabling bar 10(hereinafter “the first end” 502) and the other end extending towardsthe bump 20 (hereinafter “the second end” 504). The tube is filled withviscous fluid 510. On the top of the fluid within the first end 502,sits a first piston 506 beneath the enabling bar 10; on the top of thefluid 510 within the second end 504, sits a second piston 508 beneaththe bump 20. In general, the conduit 50 serves the same function as aclass 1 lever. Referring to FIG. 5, when the vehicle 3 has notapproached the enabling bar 10 yet, the enabling bar 10 is supported bythe piston 506 and slightly protrudes out of the road surface 2 but willnot obstruct traffic or cause any jolt to the vehicle. The speed bump 20is nested in the groove 23 with the top leveled with the road surface 2.As the vehicle 3 moves over the enabling bar 10, the tire rolls over theenabling bar 10, pushing the enabling bar 10 downward, depressing thepiston 506. The increased pressure build-up on the fluid 510 directlybelow the piston 506 forces the fluid 510 to flow towards the second end504 and pushes the piston 508 which in turns pushes the bump 20 up fromthe groove 23 on the road surface 2.

After a predetermined time interval based on the speed limit, the piston508 and the viscous fluid 510 will fall downwards due to gravity and thespeed bump 20 retracts into groove 23 and returns to the restingposition illustrated in FIG. 5. The device 1 may include other means tocontrol the force that brings the speed bump 20 falls besides gravity.The falling rate of the speed bump 20 is predetermined based on thespeed limit so that the vehicle 3 travels within the speed limit willnot encounter the bump 20 while the vehicle 3 travels over the speedlimit will encounter the bump 20.

While there have been shown and described and pointed out thefundamental novel features of the invention as applied to the preferredembodiments, it will be understood that the foregoing is considered asillustrative only of the principles of the invention and not intended tobe exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed.Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the aboveteachings. The embodiments discussed were chosen and described toprovide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and itspractical application to enable one of ordinary skill in the art toutilize the invention in various embodiments and with variousmodifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated All suchmodifications and variations are within the scope of the invention asdetermined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance withthe breadth to which they are entitled.

1-15. (canceled)
 16. A speed bump device for controlling the trafficspeed comprising: a) an enabling bar lying horizontally across the roadsurface and designed to not obstruct movement of the vehicle; with thepressure of the vehicle tire, said enabling bar is pushed downward tocreate a downward force; b) a speed bump lying horizontally across theroad surface, wherein the bump, once pushed up to the limit, will startto fall freely via gravity; and c) a link mechanism, transforming thedownward force of said enabling bar into an upward force of said bump,wherein said link mechanism is a single class 1 lever comprising a leverarm having a first end and a second end, and a fulcrum substantiallypositioned at the middle of said lever arm.
 17. The speed bump device ofclaim 16, wherein the enabling bar is in contact with the first tire ofthe vehicle and is pushed downward by the pressure of said vehicle tire,once pushed down to the limit, said enabling bar will start to recoverwith a resistance to slow the recovery, so the second tire will not hitsaid enabling bar again.
 18. The speed bump device of claim 16, whereinthe link mechanism further comprises a first column connecting theenabling bar with said first end of said lever arm and a second columnconnecting the bump with said second end of said lever arm.
 19. A speedbump device for controlling the traffic speed comprising: a) an enablingbar lying horizontally across the road surface and designed to notobstruct movement of the vehicle; with the pressure of the vehicle tire,said enabling bar is pushed downward to create a downward force; b) aspeed bump lying horizontally across the road surface, wherein the bump,once pushed up to the limit, will start to fall freely via gravity; c) aconduit link mechanism, lying beneath the road surface, including a Ushaped tube filled with a fluid, having a first end extending toward theenabling bar, a second end extending toward the bump, a first pistonsitting on top of the fluid within the first end connecting said Ushaped tube to said enabling bar, a second piston sitting on top of thefluid within the second end connecting said U shaped tube to said bump;and d) an encasement, the link mechanism being installed within saidencasement, having two openings on top of said encasement just beneaththe road surface, the first opening allowing the first piston toprotrude from and retract into said encasement in order to supportupward and downward movement of the enabling bar, the second openingallowing the second piston to protrude from and retract into saidencasement to provide support to the upward and downward movement of thespeed bump.
 20. The speed bump device of claim 19 wherein the enablingbar is in contact with the first tire of the vehicle and is pusheddownward by the pressure of said vehicle tire, once pushed down to thelimit, will start to recover with a resistance to slow the recovery, sothe second tire will not hit the bump again.
 21. The speed bump deviceof claim 19, wherein the height is the maximum speed bump height allowedby the regulation of the town and the height of the bump above theroadway upon impact is determined by how much the speed of the vehicleexceeds the speed limit of the implemented road.